As I underlined in my Eighty Percent Raw article that I shared a couple days ago, I believe that it's very important to acknowledge that the New Year is a continuation of what went before, not a clean slate; and that 'new years' begin every minute of every day, so that while January1st is a good time to set intentions, it should not be considered the only possible time and disproportionately loaded down with unrealistic demands on oneself.
My major intention and resolution this year is to be an excellent reviewer, payer-of-attention and stayer-on-track (also returner-to-track). I am aiming to sharpen my focus in several areas that I already work on, rather than planning to branch out in unwonted directions.
I'll be going into my third full year in Alaska, and living here is a challenge all of its own that demands its own respect. Learning how to read the weather, drive on ice better, cope with bugs in summer and fall, do a better job with root vegetables in this year's garden, and many more things, all fall under the 'reviewer' intention here, as do things like cleaning, going to the laundromat and hauling water in timely manner.
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| water runs out fast, but the Vitamix and the home internet have been amazing additions this year |
Phil and I will be going into our third year of marriage: our wedding anniversary is coming up on January 10th. Continuing to cherish our love and to build our relationship together, to support one another in our continued changes, to go on adventures together and chill out at home together, be solitary and social together and apart: these are up there at the top of the intentions list for both of us.
2010 was a year of great consolidation and resultant progress for me. Living in one place, in a stable relationship with someone extremely supportive, gave me the opportunity to really pursue my writerly vocation. Other things fell in to support that, like the book clubs and writers group in town, the Kachemak Bay Writers Conference in June, the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival in July, the translating and editing jobs, getting internet at home, as well as working at the used bookstore in town occasionally. More recently, I've connected with another poet in town and we're starting to meet regularly to read and discuss poetic works.
Most exciting of all was the news, just before Christmas, that I've been accepted into the Rainier Writing Workshop. Going through an MFA program will help me steer my craft and remain on track. In structural terms, that's what I'm looking forward to most of all in this new year. Having creative writing be at the center of my life is what I've always either most wanted or assumed would inevitably, naturally happen when I finally got things together. May this be the year!
The stability also created potential for healing. At the beginning of 2010, I found myself firmly back in the 'Raw Foods' camp but with a much lower-glycemic and superfood-heavier emphasis than previously, and without the craziness of insisting on being '100%,' whatever that even means. And I started working with a Naturopath and a therapist to address some of the serious longterm physical and other issues resulting from a long eating-disorder history. I begin 2011 so much healthier, happier and more energetic than I did 2010: surely far more important than any size-measurement. And while I have been creative in culinary ways all along, toward the end of 2010 I've really been reconnecting with the joys of raw gourmet cuisine, aided in this by a very appreciative audience of friends.
Despite the stability, we also traveled. It was great to spend time at Phil's family farm in Oregon and visit with his mom, and to go to England after so many years, catch up with parents, brothers, old friends and the new niece. Of course, the birth of my niece and becoming an aunt was a major event this year too!
It's just about six weeks until this blog's one-year anniversary as well! I'd kept online journals of one sort or another for years before this, off and on, but this one feels more like an entity of its own. It brings so much into my life, in terms of the great connections that it offers, the smart people that I come into contact with through it, the opportunity to share stories from my life with friends who are far away. It also gives me the opportunity to give of myself and share insights, experiences, recipes, stories and more. Additionally, blogging is currently the main medium in which my writerly vocation and my passion about nutrition and raw foods intersect, which makes it very desirable.
The 'reviewer' intention has lots to do around the blog: I definitely have the desire to continue to write about food and nutrition, and to deepen and broaden the scope of this writing with more book and product reviews and more in-depth discussions of nutritional research, healing and self-experimentation. I hope to share more about the creative writing process and more non-food-related book reviews also. My intention is that my blog will grow in many ways this year.
However, I am going to need to monitor my blogging time very acutely. Much as I love to comment on every blog I read and to blog very frequently myself, I have to accept that there will be times when my workload and creative writing demands will have to take precedence over this. I know that everyone who reads blogs, let alone writes them, will understand this, and will also understand how hard it is to tear myself away! I already know that daily blogging is not realistic for me. For 2011, I'm hoping for an average of three posts per week. Some weeks may well bring more and others, especially if we spend much time in the wilderness come spring and summer, less. I'm hoping that this will allow me to put more time and thought into my posts, rather than rapidly firing something off to get it out there (although that style has much to commend it also).
Many thanks and much love to all my readers.
